Kuwaiti Emir Shaikh Sabah Al Ahmad Al Sabah approved a new 16-member cabinet with two women ministers for the first time: Maasouma Al Mubarak who was moved from communications to the health ministry, and Nuriya Al Sebih who was given the education portfolio. Nuriya Al Sebih the new Minister of Education and Higher Education is a retired top bureaucrat who has served in different positions related to education. This is her first high governmental position and a big advancement for Kuwait, a conservative religious state. Unlike neighbouring Saudi Arabia, in Kuwait there are no restrictions on women’s dress code and they are free to wear or neglect the hijab. Nonetheless, a controversy around women and the Muslim law erupted when Kuwaiti Islamist MPs asked the new minister to wear the hijab and she refused. Though the Parliament speaker upheld her right of dress while attending session, the Islamist and tribal parties form a majority in Kuwait’s parliament and continue to grumble. Kuwait News Agency: Cabinet profiles